My trip to Maine was absolutely wonderful. My friends in New Hampshire that served as my airport ride lent me one of their cars for the weekend, which was a HUGE blessing. (And the car is a stick! I was so happy to drive stick again. I was sad in my car yesterday to stick out my left foot for the clutch and not find it. But that's ok, I am still SO grateful for my car!) This allowed me to mosey my way up to Auburn-which means I got to stop and walk on the beach and see my friend Marsha. It was so lovely!
I stayed at my friend Sarah's house in Auburn. She was one of my youth leaders in junior high and just took me under her wing. She is a great person to know because she works in the office at church, so she is in the loop with everything!! It was really good to spend some time with her and staying at her house worked out really well.
Friday evening a few people from the missions committee came over. It was a great opportunity for me to share with them and let them get to know me better.
Saturday I saw one of my friends from high school and his wife. They are expecting. It's neat, but also really weird. When I return somewhere, for some irrational reason I expect things to be how they were when I left. No one is any older, everything is the same, and me coming back is like it being the next day. But that is NOT the case!!!
I experienced this a lot at my church too. I used to babysit a lot for various families, and now all these kids I used to watch are in middle school or high school! They used to be those little twerps, or my friends' younger siblings. Well, they're still younger siblings, they're just not as young! And, of course, they don't remember that I used to babysit them. That part is pretty funny.
So, it's weird, but it's also really exciting, because I can see how these kids have grown and matured. I am thrilled at what I saw this weekend at East Auburn Baptist Church. God is working there, and people are joining Him in His work! It is how things should be! Granted, things aren't perfect there. There is no such thing as a perfect church, not as long as humans are involved. But this is a body that cares about what God cares about and is taking a lot of action to show it, and that is SO wonderful!
Example: some young people in the church felt led to start a special service for youth/young adults. They have taken this and are RUNNING with it! They have their own worship team and the pastor's son does most of the preaching but this weekend, the little brother (who's not so little anymore) of one of my best friends from junior high gave the sermon. It was so neat to see how this 12 or 14 year old boy has matured into a young man with a desire to know and serve the Lord and share the Gospel! These are vibrant youth-a group of them were just in New York City helping at soup kitchens and giving out blankets and stuff to homeless people. This team was also designated to come forward and pray for me after I shared in the service about God leading me to Costa Rica. What an amazing, powerful time of prayer!! It was so beautiful!
When I first got to church on Saturday evening I saw the pastor, Roger. He gave me a huge hug and said, "Welcome home, dear!" Though Auburn doesn't really feel like "home" anymore (see previous post), I am delighted to still be a part of East Auburn Baptist Church.
So, it was a great weekend. I saw a lot of people. My best friend from middle school and high school (who doesn't live in Auburn anymore) came up with her husband in a snowstorm on Sunday to see me! I was pretty sure I wasn't ever going to see her again. I got to share about Costa Rica 5 times. I was able to speak some Spanish because a few latino boys have started to go to church there. I also got to have a nice Sunday afternoon with a couple that was really good friends of my parents. The wife did missions work in Ecuador for some 8 years before she got married. It was great to be with them and listen to her share about her experience with me.
It was a rather full weekend, but I didn't jam pack it so full that I didn't have any downtime. It wasn't until I was enjoying that downtime that I realized the wisdom in not cramming my schedule. I had been thinking the trip was going to be a whirlwind of madness and constant busyness. But, it wasn't. I didn't get to see some of the people I'd wanted to, but that's ok. Having some free time allowed me to relax and be able to process what was happening. And I feel like I had a nice weekend in Maine instead of a crazy whirlwind of a trip. Ah, the joys of la vida tranquila (the peaceful life). :-)
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